BreastCancer.org

Radiation therapy — also called radiotherapy — is a highly targeted, highly effective way to destroy cancer cells in the breast that may stick around after surgery. Radiation can reduce the risk of breast cancer recurrence by about 70%. Despite what many people fear, radiation therapy is relatively easy to tolerate and its side effects are limited to the treated area.

Your radiation treatments will be overseen by a radiation oncologist, a cancer doctor who specializes in radiation therapy.

In this section you can learn more about radiation therapy, including:

• How Radiation Works
• When is Radiation Appropriate?
• Types of Radiation
• Managing Skin Side Effects
• Managing Other Side Effects of Radiation
• Radiation for Metastatic Breast Cancer
• Ten Key Points About Radiation Therapy
• Staying on Track with Radiation Therapy

The medical expert for Radiation Therapy is Marisa Weiss, M.D., director of breast radiation oncology and director of breast health outreach, Lankenau Hospital, Jefferson Health System, Philadelphia, PA.

Dr. Weiss is president and founder of Breastcancer.org and a member of the Breastcancer.org Professional Advisory Board, which includes more than 60 medical experts in breast cancer-related fields.

This section was made possible by an unrestricted educational grant from the Cytyc Corporation.